Salad is to Men...

what Mufasa is to Shenzi. Case in point, the video below. Not the best quality, but I'm sure it would resonate with your interpretation of how it would go, telling your man salad is for dinner.

 The nutritional value alone is a huge bonus. Getting a guy to eat it for dinner...what's the opposite of huge bonus? Huge depletion?

If I lived in an ideal world, I would eat raw fruit and veggies 95% of the time. I love salads, but do get burned out after a while a take a break. We have been on a break, so now I'm gearing up to start making them again! Jon likes salad too, so having it for dinner isn't really a no win zone.

One of his musts for having a salad, though, is it needs to have meat on it. I tried getting away with veggie only salads, but was quickly rebuffed. After a couple of years, I have quite a few salads that have been winners in our house. 

• Cobb Salad- Diced Ham, Diced Turkey (or chicken), Cheese, Tomato, Lettuce, Bacon, Croutons, Dressing & Avacado (if you want)
• BBQ Chicken Salad- Lettuce, Tomato, Cheese, Grilled Chicken Strips, Carrots, Cheese Quesadilla, BBQ Ranch Dressing (equal parts bbq sauce to ranch dressing)
• Monte Cristo Salad- Lettuce, Swiss Cheese, Diced Turkey, Diced Ham, Tomato, Raspberry Dressing
• Fajita Salad- Lettuce, Tomato, Carrot, Cheese, Fajita Meat, Cheese Quesadilla, Dressing
• Taco Salad- Lettuce, Cheese, Tomato, Carrot, Red Cabbage, Taco Meat, Crushed Tortilla Chips, Salsa & Sour Cream Dressing
• Black & Bleu Salad- Lettuce, Tomato, Red Cabbage, Steak (leftover!), Bleu Cheese, Croutons, Dressing

One thing I try to do to cut down on the cost, is buy iceberg and mix it with a leaf lettuce. Lettuce (the most I've paid) is $1.90 for a head of leaf lettuce. Use half for a salad and the other half for tacos another night.

Also, if we're doing a lot of Mexican/Southwest dishes, I might keep a black bean & corn relish in the fridge. It makes a great topper. 

A little tip for adding carrots to the salad... sometimes the flavor can be too much as a slice. After I peel it and cut off the ends, I use the peeler to make small thin peelings of carrot. Or I will grate it. Make sure you start at the fat end to use  the majority of the carrot.

These salads are a great way to use leftover meats from grilling, eating out, another meal...the possibilities are endless! And it's a one pot meal. All your vegetables, protein, dairy & fat (even carbs sometimes) in one place. Hmm, maybe salads will become the new casserole!

*Nerd Alert* The Cost of Homemade Bread

Maybe it's because of this sweet little thing

That rope looking thing in her hand is her blankie. She's had it since she was a baby and this is pretty much all that's left. We don't travel without it.

The stuffed animal she's holding is Gracias. She's had her for nearly 3 years. Her daddy got it for her when she was almost 3 and sick. She's sick today.

Nothing makes the house smell yummier than baking bread! And she loves my bread.

Here comes the nerdiness. Don't say I didn't warn you. I want to know if it's cheaper to make my own bread. I love the fact that I know exactly what is in my bread. There are no weird chemicals or additives. Just the ingredients from my pantry. It makes me smile.


The first ingredient to a 1 pound loaf is water, which I consider free. Yes it's not, but 5/8 cup per loaf is not enough to register unless I make like 100 a month.

Next I add the applesauce. The recipe calls for oil, but I prefer to not use oil if I can help it. The applesauce costs $1.98 for a 46 oz jar. A tablespoon is 1/2 an ounce and for this loaf I use 1/2 a tablespoon. The cost is $.01 per loaf for applesauce.

Next up is brown sugar. 1 pound box = 9 loaves (1/4 cup each). That adds up to $.11 per loaf.

And then we have salt. I paid $.42 for the large container of iodized salt. 1/2 tsp doesn't even register as a penny in the calculations.

Flour is next! I used All-Purpose. Yes, I know it says bread flour, but this was in my pantry. Usually I use half all-purpose and half whole wheat. Still delish! A 5lb bag has 20 cups of flour. This recipe take 1.5 cups. It cost $1.90 for the bag, so that's $.14 for the loaf.

 Wowza for the oatmeal! There are 3 cups per pound of oatmeal. This recipe calls for a half cup, so that means $.07 per loaf.

And my last ingredient is yeast. The large jar is under $4 but I prefer to round up to a whole number. Each jar has 16 packets, this takes half a packet. Per loaf cost is $.13.

Close the lid on my trusty $10 garage sale bread maker, and 3 hours later my house smells like heaven on earth. But how much was the ingredient total? A whole $.46 per loaf. Of course, there is electricity used, but I haven't seen a raise in my bill yet!

I told you I'm a total number nerd.

Be forewarned, though. Making your own bread means you eat a lot more bread. It's yummy and comforting and tastes way better in the mornings that store bought toast. I personally love super thin slices for everything, so our bread can last quite a while. Usually though, only about 3 days tops. Maybe we'll eat less when homemade bread is old news in our house. We aren't there yet.

Healthy Eating On A Budget

Normally, the two words 'healthy' and 'budget' to not mesh in a sentence. I am not normal, however. So in this post I will make them mesh!

So let's take a look at a 'normal' meal. That usually includes a meat, starch & vegetable (please tell me you include vegetables, I think they're becoming a mythical creature). Great! The cheapest meat is probably ground beef, so we'll make hamburgers with potato fries and green beans. Our ingredients are listed below:

Beef $1.29 for 1 pound
Buns $.49 (.99/2 because it's 2 meals worth in the package)
2 large baking potatoes $1.28
2 cans green beans $1.34

Meal total: $4.41

Not bad at all. Of course that's assuming you have all the condiments in your house. Ketchup, mustard, mayo, oil for the potato fries, butter for the green beans. If not, that can add up.

Let's take a look at the cost of a salad. Don't groan. I can hear your cells crying out for live nutrients from fresh vegetables. Even if those vegetables are covered in a smothering of dressing. Below are the ingredients that I buy for our family when we eat salad:

Lettuce $.90 (Artisan lettuce costs $2.69/3...it really makes 3 meals)
Carrots $.39 ($.79 for a pound we use half)
2 large roma tomatoes $.75
Eggs $.68 (2 eggs each)
Cheese $.50 (half ounce each is great)

Grand total $2.47

Again, if you have to buy dressing, that's another $1 for a cheap bottle on sale. I realize that you can't buy a third of a package of lettuce, a half bag of carrots and a quarter bag of cheese. But we're looking at actual cost here. Triple that and it's $7.50 for 3 meals. That is still a steal!!! And a healthy one at that.

Your intestines are thanking me already ;)

Be creative with your meals. Buy more fresh ingredients. It's not going to hurt the grocery budget as much as you think. Really.